Police Called to Momentum Center
Mixing IDD, MI and SUD People is Triggering Mental Health Crisis
What happens when people who have difficulty reading social situations are mixed together with people who have difficulty regulating their emotions? Could it trigger crisis situations? As humans, we instinctively understand there are different types of people; some are more vulnerable than others. We know that vulnerable people need a little extra help and protection. We know that it is wrong to take advantage of people, but even worse to take advantage of children and people with mental and physical disabilities. Do you see any benefits to mixing people which have intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), mental illness (MI), and substance use disorders (SUD) in situations that are not monitored by medical professionals?
These three populations of people are intentionally mixed together at the Momentum Center, which is working in partnership with Michigan State University, to research emotional regulation. During the June 26, 2023, Ottawa County Community Mental Health board meeting, Barbara Lee Van Horssen, the Experi-Mentor at the Momentum Center explained, (7:10) “We also combine and intentionally integrate populations that are typically placed in different programs. Namely people with mental illness, people with addictions, and people with disabilities.” She later disclosed that the Momentum Center is involved with research, and has even submitted a paper to a peer reviewed journal. (33:20) “We have submitted our first article to a peer reviewed journal and are anticipating publication. [] We are continuing research with MSU on testing something that’s called SIERA. It’s an intervention and emotional regulation that has been used successfully with people on the autism spectrum, and we are using it with people with mental illness.”
On March 17, 2023, the Momentum Center called the police because of an incident that involved drugs. According to the police report, a patron at the Momentum Center who holds the Dad’s Lives Matter sign had given an autistic patron marijuana laced M&M’s. Not understanding what he had been given, the autistic patron ate the entire bag. He ended up in the hospital being treated for an overdose.
Perhaps it was that incident that led the Momentum Center to implement more safety precautions. Van Horssen explained, (11:35) “We have just implemented a form to lodge formal complaints because as you can imagine, when a lot of people socialize together, people start having personality conflicts, and so we are working to weed out the conflicts on what’s really a situation that needs to be addressed. [] We take that safety screening, which is provided by CMH, if someone is not deemed safe for the program, then they don’t become members. If they need a supports person, they need to bring their supports person with them. We don’t offer that level of supervision.”
Mixing these populations is not the only way their impulse control is being tested. The OAISD is teaching explicit Comprehensive Sexuality Education to IDD young adults, which potentially puts them at grave risk due to their inability to fully understand the content. If IDD people demonstrate inappropriate/sexual behavior publicly as a result of graphic sex education in school, they could be arrested. In addition, they may lose Medicaid funding or be placed in a stabilization home. It is well-known that many IDD people have innocent natures, but lack proper social context, impulse control, and social manners, sometimes resulting in problematic behaviors. They need our protection.
It appears the Momentum Center is taking advantage of vulnerable people by using them for fundraising and studying them, while claiming to be helping them. What these IDD, MI, and SUD residents really need are psychiatrists and psychologists to help them deal with their mental illnesses, community support people to help those with IDD conditions such as autism and Downs Syndrome interact with the greater community, and counselors to help those with addiction.